We have Barton’s apology but still waiting for the apology from the rest of the House Republicans

Some times the Republicans' actions are so out there that even the conservative corporate media can’t ignore it, and the editorial in Tuesday’s edition of the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus on the right’s apology for the massive oil spill and wrecking the Gulf coast ecosystem is one of those times.

You will recall last week that of U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the ranking Republican on the House and Commerce Committee, apologized to BP for its treatment by the President and having to pay for the damage they caused. He called the President’s Obama’s securing of a $20 billion escrow account from BP to pay for the clean up and compensate Gulf Coast residents who have lost their livelihoods and way of life a “shakedown.”. Barton was quickly forced to apologize for the apology, but make no mistake about it, that is the official position of a number of House Republicans.

That is also the official policy of the Republican Study Committee, the caucus of House Conservatives with some 117 members, including Barton. Its membership also includes Michigan Congressman Dave Camp, R-Midland; “Mad” Thad McCotter, R-Livonia; and “Twitter” Pete Hoekstra, R-Holland.

The editorial got it right:
“Remember when conservatives were nearly fainting in horror when Obama made civil gestures to foreign nations early in his administration? Why, he was apologizing to foreigners. That was silly, but that was the claim.”
“So one would think that there would be praise for a president who negotiated a minimum $20 billion escrow account from BP. Instead, Barton went overboard, publicly criticizing our nation’s president while abjectly apologizing before a foreign business leader.”

Good job conservative editorial board. We also need to remember this in November.

Republicans roll out false talking points over BP escrow account

The latest Republican talking point on the BP oil spill and worst ecological disaster in U.S. history is that President’s Obama’s securing of a $20 billion escrow account from BP to pay for the clean up and compensate Gulf Coast residents who have lost their livelihoods and way of life is that it’s unconstitutional.

Like everything else President Obama does, the Republicans will criticize him no matter what he does for any reason, and they are throwing around words like “tyranny” and “strong-arm” to describe the President’s move to ensure Gulf residents are properly compensated, unlike the victims of the Exxon Valdez disaster where victims waited years to be properly compensated.

I saw rightwing tool and TV pitchman Ben Stein was on the Larry King show pushing the lie that the escrow account was unconstitutional. Considering BP voluntary created the fund, I have no idea what constitutional principal was violated.

Drug addled gas bag Rush Limbaugh has already criticized the President for not doing enough and then doing too much recently made the ridiculous charge that the fund was “Organized Crime in White House.”

But the worst remarks were those of U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, the ranking Republican on the House and Commerce Committee, apologized to BP for its treatment by the President and having to pay for the damage they caused. Fellow Republicans ran away from him as fast as possible, and Barton apologized for the apology within minutes, but that’s how Republicans really feel.

Here is the scary thing and what voters need to remember in November: if Republicans controlled the House, Barton would be the one regulating oil companies like BP, and people in the Gulf who have lost the way of life they have enjoyed for generations would get nothing.